Piastri F1 column: Busting for the return of racing

It’s the calm before the storm as we gear up for the triple-header in the United States, Mexico and Brazil.

They are always a cool set of races and the fans never fail to turn up in large numbers, which is awesome.

It’s been nice to have a few weeks off following the Singapore Grand Prix to rest up ahead of three back-to-back race weekends. I did enjoy a few days of recovery but I’ve well and truly got the bug back to get back in the car and get racing again.

I’ve been on the simulator, that rightly has pride of place in my living room, a fair amount trying to fill the racing break and it was also nice to pop back to the factory in Woking and spend some days with the team, which isn’t always possible with all the travel.

I am highly motivated to round off the season in strong form. I am happy with my driving and the momentum that I’ve had with my results over the European season and at the start of the flyaway races but it is really important to me to keep that up.

As a team, we want to win the Constructors’ Championship, and I want to finish as high as I can in the Drivers’ standings and take that momentum into 2025.

I’ve really enjoyed my second season in F1, which has been full of learning and development, and the remaining six races will be no different.

Winning trophies and fighting at the sharp end is infectious and all you want to be doing as a racing driver. Luckily, the team have done an incredible job in giving us the tools to go out and perform.

The car feels awesome to drive and is a pleasure to be at the wheel of.

Before last season I’d never visited tracks like Mexico or Brazil so it was my first time at those tracks. It will obviously only be my second time this year so there is still plenty to build on and I’ll be trying to apply those learnings. Track knowledge is something that you only build up across multiple visits and even the experienced drivers are still honing their driving style.

I’ll actually have a special helmet design for Austin that I’ll be wearing in Texas but also again in Las Vegas in November. It’s a cool US look, that I’ve been wanting to do for a while. Keep an eye out for it on my social channels and I’m excited to see what you guys think.

One person that is not due to be in Austin is Daniel and I would like to mention him.

He’s been great with me since we first got to know each other several years ago and is a really nice guy. I’ve really enjoyed spending more time with him away from the track, especially these past two years, even if he was too good for me at padel.

He has flown the flag for Australia in F1 for many years and I remember watching many of his races as a kid back in Victoria.

Congratulations to him on everything that he has achieved up to this point and I wish him all the best for the future whatever it holds.

Thanks for all the messages of support that you guys continue to send me and enjoy the racing. Take care. OP

Piastri’s F1 column as published in Auto Action magazine issue 1897 on sale October 17 2024.

Head to Oscar’s official website for the latest news and his new range of merchandise store.oscarpiastri.com 

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